Thing 1 & Thing 2--The Costume

8:44:00 PM

Well, I had a couple of people guess what the twins are going to be for
Halloween based on the $2 Blue Wigs I made last week—Thing 1 and Thing 2 from Dr. Seuss’ The Cat and the Hat.

So far, we’ve created a wig for each of them using a dollar store knit
hat and a feather boa for each of them. If you recall, one of the challenges I
gave myself was that I be able to reuse the material I had as much as possible,
so I just stitched on the boa. That way I can just snip a few threads and reuse
the boa and the hats. You could also use a glue gun to attach the boa if you
aren’t interested in reusing the materials—you’re only out a few bucks for each
wig.

Now, on to the rest of the outfit. I have been planning on these
costumes for a couple of months now. The pants were actually quite easy—I already
have two pairs of red pants that the girls use on a regular basis. However, I
don’t know if you shop for kids much, but it’s actually a challenge to find
plain red shirts to repurpose into a costume—most have some kind of decal or
pattern. I know I could probably find little shirts with Thing 1 and Thing 2 on
it, and it’d still be cute for them to wear out after Halloween, but then what
would I blog about?

But the key here is planning ahead. I looked at all the consignment
sales in my area—I was already there shopping for fall clothing for the kids.
And amazingly, I found 2 solid red long sleeved t-shirts. The only difference
between the two was that one had a hood. And actually, this is ok because it
allows us to tell them apart from the back—remember, my twins are identical!

Even better, each of these shirts were in good shape, and only cost a dollar each.
If you are shopping for a little girl at a consignment store or sale, remember
to look in the boys’ section—that’s where I found these shirts.

I created a little graphic in photoshop--a circle about 4 inches in diameter with a cool font:

I then went to A.C. Moore and picked up a piece of white felt. Felt is
pretty economical. When it isn’t on sale, it’s around $.30 each, and I had a
15% off my entire purchase coupon, so I got one sheet for about a quarter.

The nice thing about felt is that it's a little translucent.

So I took a fine sharpie and traced the graphic.

And then I colored it in, and cut it out. I just tacked it onto the shirt with some black thread, so it could be easily removed. and that's it!

So in case you’re wondering, this is my run down on the amount spent
for 2 costumes

2 hats @ $1 each: $2

2 boas @ $1 each: $2

2 red shirts @ $1 each: $2

1 sheet of felt @ $.25

2 pairs red pants: on hand

Thread: on hand

Sharpie: on hand

Total spent: $6.25 for 2 costumes, including the wig, and the shirt, pants, hat, and boa
should be able to be used for other things. Total time spent: about 3 hours,
including photoshop time, wig making, and shirt decorating.

Great idea! I totally agree when thrifting for basics like red tees the boys area is your best bet. I tried to keep Halloween thrifted/reusable this year too, with toddlers it's really the way to go!Rachel

I love this. Please link it to my linky party & anything else you have to share. It just went live a little early :) Thanks, Peggy. http://diycraftyprojects.com/2012/10/whatcha-work-up-wednesday-5-linky-parties-are-back.html

My sister and I host a joint party and we'd love for you to join us. Remember, when you link up at one site, it shows up on both my blog and my sister's blog too...double exposure!! http://www.saving4six.com/2012/10/welcome-to-think-tank-thursday-2.html

Cute! I love the wigs. I'm doing things one and two for my (non-twin) boys. I found solid shirts and pants at Target for $5 and $7 each. I copied a Thing 1 graphic on to an iron on transfer paper and ironed that onto my felt then basted onto the tee shirts. We're using paint on hair dye instead of wigs. My dollar store doesn't have feather boas, or I might be tempted to take back that hair dye! You were definitely thriftier than I was with your costumes :)

About me

I’m Rachel, a real-life architect, wife and mom of three little girls 8 and under—including twins! I try to find a balance between my work outside the home and my work inside the home, and try to stay sane in the meantime. I love sharing new recipes, crafts, as well as homemaking and parenting tips—all the things that build the architecture of this mom.

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